Photo: w.marsh · CC BY 2.0London’s household incomes are lower than in 90% of U.S. towns
About one in three work in London itself; outside it, Lexington draws the most (6%, 67 miles). 30.2% of residents are in poverty, next to 16.1% for Kentucky as a whole. Jobs and income earn London C−; getting around on foot earns it B+.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2024, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
Where London stands out on work
London fills up on a workday
London has 13,686 jobs, 4.8 for every working resident. On a workday afternoon about 18,000 people are in town, more than double the 7,600 who live here. Day and night ↓
London draws workers from far and wide
The 13,686 jobs in London are filled from a wide area. London’s own residents hold 7% and the ten next-biggest home towns 9%; the other 84% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
The figures behind London’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, London is better than 25% of U.S. towns, #89 of 142 in Kentucky. Unemployment holds London’s grade up (3.5%, U.S. 5.2%); the poverty rate pulls it down. It also does well on job access by car.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, London could be anywhere from D to C+.
London on a workday afternoon
On a workday 1,897 residents head out to work, 983 work right here, and 12,703 people come in from elsewhere.
About 18,000 people are in London on a workday afternoon, 141% more than live here.
4.8 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2024, primary jobs.
The daily trip into London
Where London clocks in
4% of workers
3% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
The kinds of work in London
13,686 jobs are based in London.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in London, 2014 → 2024: 14,253 → 13,686. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2024.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs London’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 24 minutes each way for London’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 7.8 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of London workers work from home, vs 10% across Kentucky. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,243 commuters (the 15% who work from home are left out). Across Kentucky: 85% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The commute from London, by distance
About 23% show a job over 50 miles away. Some of that is real, and some is employers that report every worker at a head office, so a few long commutes are on paper only.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2024.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
The commute in London is mostly behind the wheel
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, London is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns, #57 of 142 in Kentucky. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 1.9% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.1% across Kentucky.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 2,641 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service: no data. EPA’s transit file has no stops for most of this county (its agencies had not published schedules in the format EPA used in 2020). That is missing data, not a finding that there is no bus or train.
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 11.1% of London households have no vehicle (Kentucky 6.8%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of London’s commuters take a bus or train.
Among U.S. towns of 5,300 to 10,300, London ranks 2,509th of 3,111 on jobs and income
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 73 | Union KY | 7,937 | $137K | 2.9% | 1.5% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 184 | Oakbrook KY | 10,211 | $95K | 2.5% | 1.6% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 189 | Edgewood KY | 8,503 | $119K | 3.8% | 2.4% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,507 | Merrill WI | 9,389 | $53K | 17.4% | 4.2% | 31% | C− |
| 2,508 | Skowhegan ME | 8,676 | $49K | 14.2% | 3.7% | 31% | C− |
| 2,509 | London KY | 7,637 | $48K | 30.2% | 3.5% | 34% | C− |
| 2,510 | Arizona City AZ | 9,543 | $66K | 12.6% | 4.4% | 2% | C− |
| 2,511 | Clinton Township IN | 8,925 | $57K | 17.3% | 4.2% | 18% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,111 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 6% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of London, the top three, the last and three more from Kentucky.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2024, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in London: questions
What is the median household income in London?
$47,591 (±$8,056) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $63,726 across Kentucky and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in London?
30.2%, against 16.1% across Kentucky and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from London?
24 minutes each way on average, against 24 across Kentucky and 26 nationally. 15% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in London work?
34% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Lexington (6%, 67 mi), Corbin (4%, 13 mi), Somerset (3%, 29 mi) (Census LEHD 2024).
Is London walkable?
London is more walkable than 66% of U.S. towns (Walkability B+): an EPA walkability index of 9.0 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around London without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 11% of households have no car. EPA has no transit data for this county.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from London, from the people who make the trip.
More of London
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2024, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.